It All Began On Christmas Day
by SimplisticDreams
Summary: A day in the Black Order. Allen had thought that no one remembered his birthday, but he was mistaken. With a fluttering heart, he thinks of a way to repay the one who remembered. AllenxLenalee one-shot .


_**A/N: **_Just some little random one-shot I wrote to relieve some stress and to vent some feelings. It's incredibly predictable, simple, and cliche, but I hope you guys enjoy it. (I also had a blast writing Komui).

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It all began on Christmas Day.

Allen was slowly walking back to his room, exhausted from over-eating at the Christmas party Jerry decided to host in the cafeteria with all the members of the Black Order Headquarters in attendance. He hadn't missed out on a single bite—Jerry had even made some English Christmas Pudding, something Allen vaguely remembered from when he was young. Not only that, but he had managed to stuff himself with ham, turkey, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, corn bread sufflet, green bean casserole, and quite a few candy canes. And that was merely the start of it.

The hallways of the living quarters in the Black Order were very dark at this hour. The adults were most likely still down in the cafeteria bringing out the alcohol (which was the reason why he left). Allen decided he'd rather not have reminders of his traumitizing moments with Cross Marian. However he had truly enjoyed himself—it was seldom he had a moment to relax and feel refreshed. Though he was a bit disappointed he didn't get to see Lenalee one last time before taking his leave from the party. He had wished his other close friends a good night—well, maybe not Kanda—but couldn't find Lenalee. Eventually he had given up on finding her and decided to go to bed since eating had taken all the energy from him.

He had lifted his hand to his mouth when a yawn passed his lips. Allen had squeezed his eyes shut so tight that they had started to tear up a little bit. Hopefully he would be able to make it to his room without collapsing...

When he opened the door to his room, all fatigue immediately washed away, however. Allen stood in the doorway to his room, staring in astonishment at the sight before him. There were candles placed in neat arrangements on all surfaces all over his room. Their lighting came together in a beautiful, dim glow that seemed to enchant the air. He had taken a step in and noticed something on his table. On it, he saw a cake illuminated by the surrounding candles with neatly decorated lettering forming the words: "Happy Birthday, Allen!"

Allen was speechless.

He then noticed a white envelope gently set next to the cake, and with slightly shaking hands, he had taken it in his grasp to unseal it. He removed the stationery from inside and opened the paper to find lines of beautiful, neat handwriting. His eyes trailed over the words over and over again,

_Dear Allen,_

_Today is special. To most, the reason is because it is Christmas Day and yes, that is special. But to me, today is something more—it is your birthday! I hope today, you can feel and appreciate the love your friends—and I—have for you. May all your dearest wishes come true! Happy Birthday!_

_Love,_

_Lenalee_

Allen was so taken aback that his eyes had begun to have tears in them—and not just from yawning. Today may have not been his real birthday, since he had no recollection of his early childhood memories. But he had always called it his birthday, since today was the day Mana Walker had found and saved him on a cold, winter night on the streets in London under a glistening moon. He had recalled only once telling Lenalee that he called today his birthday. He was surprised she remembered since most everyone understandably mixed it up in the festivities of Christmas.

His heart fluttered when he thought of Lenalee coming into his room, taking great care to set up this lovely scene for him, thinking only of him. He had realized not too long ago, that he harbored some feelings for Lenalee (and after much contemplation and thinking). To him, it explained his constant smile he had around her, the occasional blush, and sometimes the glares he'd gotten from Komui. He had just never found the courage to talk to her about it. Even though it may have seemed like some sort of childish, puppy-love at the moment, he loved every bit of her.

The dearest wish of his that Lenalee spoke of was to be with her.

His thoughts immediately turned to how he could repay her. After he had blown out all of the candles and changed into his nightwear, Allen laid in his bed, playing countless scenarios over and over in his head. In some of them, he imagined himself finally confessing to her. It would be nice if she could kiss him on the cheek, gladly accepting his feelings, and they'd walk hand in hand to the cafeteria together for breakfast—or something. Allen slapped a hand on his forehead. He obviously couldn't sleep... She trailed through his mind, as he pictured the scenarios he dreamed up yet again.

Allen didn't get any ideas until several months later...

It was February 20th. Just a normal day in the Black Order—nothing spectacular or particularly extraordinary had happened. Just the occasional excorcist arriving from a mission, or being dispatched to a different country to explore some strange phenomenon. Night had fallen like in any other day, and soon members of the Black Order began to be hungry for dinner. The dinner rush had started as Jerry frantically began making food orders. Though he immediately noticed something peculiar. The one who was always first in line was missing—Allen Walker.

Of course, Lenalee had noticed as well. She never failed to spot the mountain of food and empty bowls on a table in the corner of the cafeteria, with the occasional argument toward Kanda emanating from it. That time, she didn't bother going into the line to place her order. She continued to search the cafeteria, wondering if Allen had already finished and cleared his place, which was very unlikely, considering the dinner rush had only started.

"Lenaleeeeeeeeeee!" A voice trailed behind her.

She sheepishly smiled and turned aronud to face her brother. He immediately took her in a tight, brotherly embrace, squeezing her as if he had found his favorite doll. Lenalee had heard some chuckles around her and immediately pushed herself away from sheer embarassment. She did love her brother, but his, what some people called it, "sister complex", was embarrassing at times. He beamed down at her through his glasses, grinning, showing his bright teeth. He leaned down next to her and whispered in her ear,

"Happy Birthday, Lenalee."

A flush of red came over Lenalee's face. To make the moment a little less embarassing, she spoke, "What's this? I thought you'd announce it to all of Headquarters, Brother."

"But, but, but, but, but, but...! Brother didn't want any other boys flirting with Lenaleeeeeeee!" Komui then turned his head and mumbled, "Especially Allen..."

"What?"

"Hmmm? What?" Komui seemed to retort.

Afterward an awkward silence followed. It was then that Komui retrieved from behind him a small, brightly-colored bag with a bow neatly tied around it. He gently put it into Lenalee's small hands and hugged her again. Lenalee squirmed under his embrace, hoping the attention she was drawing was little to none.

"Brother!"

"But, Brother loves you!"

"I love you, too, but please let go of me!"

The sudden harshness in her voice made Komui recoil, and he had puckered his lips together with a ridiculously sad puppy eyes behind his glasses. But he quickly smiled afterward and waved goodbye to her as he made his way to the ever growing dinner line.

Lenalee sighed heavily and glanced at the present she held in her hand, a small smile coming across her face. She decided then that she would go back to her room and leave it there, with the hope that by the time she returned to the cafeteria, she'd see a mountain of food on one of the tables. Somehow, she'd gotten the outlandish though that Komui had tied Allen up—duct tape and all—and thrown him in some closet.

The hallways of the Black Order living quarters were quite empty at that hour. Everyone had indeed gone to dinner—it seemed not a soul lingered here. Thinking of Allen's absence, she sighed and slowly turned toward her door and gently set her hand on the doorknob. After pushing the door open, rather than stepping in, she stood completely still in the doorframe, enveloped in shock.

Allen was lighting one last candle, and when the sound of hinges creaking echoed in the air, he turned his head and stood completely petrified, as if he had been caught in the middle of a crime. There were candles all over Lenalee's room on every surface. And on the table was a birthday cake—Lenalee could only guess what it said—and a card neatly set next to it. Her free hand was caught over her mouth, as she held in a loud gasp. Allen's face flushed the color of tomatoes as he slowly lifted his hand and waved at Lenalee.

"H-hello. S-sorry for coming into your room without knowing." Allen's voice was clearly trembling.

"No, not at all!" Lenalee quickly said, removing her hand away from her mouth, "This means a lot to me!"

A soft smile painted Allen's face and Lenalee's heart skipped a beat when she saw the softness in his eyes meant only for her. He finished lighting the last candle and slowly walked past her.

"Happy birthday, Lenalee! I'll be going to the cafeteria, now..."

Lenalee placed her brother's present on her pillow and rushed toward the table that held the cake and card. She could only stare at the sight for a while, her body completely flooding with joy. He remembered. She had only told him her birthday once in the middle of a conversaton and thought that the date would be swallowed up in the memory of the rest of the day's events. Clearly, that was not the case. She reached out for the card set next to the cake and removed it's contents. His handwriting was slightly messier than hers, but she loved every stroke of it. Her breathing stopped when her eyes trailed over the words Allen had written.

_Dear Lenalee,_

_As I'm sure, today must be special to you. But because it is your birthday, today means more to me than any other day, since it marks the moment you came into this world so that I could meet you. I hope that today that you can know with absolute certainty that I love you. If I was allowed one wish today, it would be for your eternal happiness and for your dearest wishes to come true._

_Love,_

_Allen_

Lenalee didn't even bother putting the paper back in the envelope or even closing her door behind her. She sped down the hallway, her heart leaping in her chest. Tears flew past her cheeks while the grin she wore on her face seemed to be plastered there forever. Eventually from the distance, she saw Allen walking toward the cafeteria, and just as he was about to make his way through the open doors, he turned to find Lenalee rushing towards him. A look of surprise glazed over his eyes when she flung herself into his arms and touched her lips to his. Not a moment later, she could feel his own arms wrapping around her back as they pulled her in closer toward him.

Completely unaware of the audience they had, they stood there together for a while, exchanging unspoken words through gentle actions. All the other exorcists, finders, and scientists watched with wide expressions, while Komui stared with a face more pale than a ghost.


End file.
